Official Interview: Stan Weisleder
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- kandscreeley
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Official Interview: Stan Weisleder
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1. How and why did you start writing?
A long time ago. When I was in the fifth grade in high school, actually. The problem was that my English teacher thought that I was plagiarizing other people’s work. I was so incensed that I lost all interest in writing and put it out of my mind for years but it was always in the back of my mind. In 1982 I decided to go back to writing or rather tried to make up for lost time by signing up for a number of courses at UCLA. I remember my first class, “Getting Started”, and what it was like staring at a blank piece of paper after so many years.
2. What does writing mean to you?
Telling a story and entertaining people at the same time.
3. Let's discuss your book The Dogs of Brownsville. For those that might be interested in reading it, can you give us a quick synopsis?
According to the blurb, it’s a coming of age gangster story played out over a large canvas wherein a handful of guys and girls make it out of the ghetto of Brownsville and arrive in Las Vegas where they observe and sometimes participate in the changing of the guard from the “Mob” to Howard Hughes to corporate America.
4. You describe this book as "faction." What's fact and what's fiction?
Except for the parts that I made up, it’s all true. In fact, all of the research that went into the book was over a foot high. The section where Curtis accidentally shoots his younger sister actually happened around the block from where I lived.
5. The book takes place over five decades. How difficult was it to write something that takes place over so many years?
The trick is to have a good outline. When I first decided to write this book it took me almost a year and a half to write the outline, approximately one page of outline per chapter. I then took about six months to re-write and edit my outline before I actually started to write the book.
6. The reviewer mentions that there are multiple characters. Are any of them a portrayal of you? If not, who do you most identify with and why?
All of my characters are real or at least based on real people. Most of them are composites of maybe three or four different people with a lot of name-changing to protect the guilty and the innocent. I’m not one of the characters nor do I identify with any of them but I do know them or of them as I was there when the story or stories take place.
7. The reviewer also mentions that you purposely included a large number of swear words. Why? How do you think that added to the story?
The swear words were not added to the story as such but were included because that is exactly how those characters spoke.
8. What's next? Is there anything in the works?
I’ve been working on some spec screenplays and I just finished a short story entitled Wake Me When I’m Dead, which is about a guy who falls for the wrong woman. Sounds familiar, right? But this one is different.
I like to end with fun questions.
9. If you could time travel to any time period other than the one you live in, which one would you go to and why?
When I was a kid we had science fiction that no one really believed but over the years we’ve gone way past that. If I could go back in time with what I know now, I could end up being a rich person. I think I would rather go into the future. That way I will see if any of my predictions come true and maybe I would be around when we meet visitors from other planets.
10. Other than your own novel, what's the best thing you've read in the past five years?
I hardly ever read fiction as I gravitate towards the history of WWII. At the present I am reading, “Churchill, Walking With Destiny”, by Andrew Roberts.
11. What do you feel most passionate about?
Writing a good story. And I don’t care if no one likes it. I have to like it.
12. Would you rather be hot or cold?
When I was younger I preferred the cold. Now that I’m older I prefer warm weather.
—Neil Gaiman
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I love these answers. I think that adults (teachers and parents) are often the reason many people stop believing in themselves and following their dreams, so I am glad that even with that awful English teacher and experience you still ended up doing something that you love. I also love your definition of "faction".kandscreeley wrote: ↑03 Feb 2023, 15:07 1. How and why did you start writing?
A long time ago. When I was in the fifth grade in high school, actually. The problem was that my English teacher thought that I was plagiarizing other people’s work. I was so incensed that I lost all interest in writing and put it out of my mind for years but it was always in the back of my mind. In 1982 I decided to go back to writing or rather tried to make up for lost time by signing up for a number of courses at UCLA. I remember my first class, “Getting Started”, and what it was like staring at a blank piece of paper after so many years.
2. What does writing mean to you?
Telling a story and entertaining people at the same time.
3. Let's discuss your book The Dogs of Brownsville. For those that might be interested in reading it, can you give us a quick synopsis?
According to the blurb, it’s a coming of age gangster story played out over a large canvas wherein a handful of guys and girls make it out of the ghetto of Brownsville and arrive in Las Vegas where they observe and sometimes participate in the changing of the guard from the “Mob” to Howard Hughes to corporate America.
4. You describe this book as "faction." What's fact and what's fiction?
Except for the parts that I made up, it’s all true. In fact, all of the research that went into the book was over a foot high. The section where Curtis accidentally shoots his younger sister actually happened around the block from where I lived.
9. If you could time travel to any time period other than the one you live in, which one would you go to and why?[/b]
When I was a kid we had science fiction that no one really believed but over the years we’ve gone way past that. If I could go back in time with what I know now, I could end up being a rich person. I think I would rather go into the future. That way I will see if any of my predictions come true and maybe I would be around when we meet visitors from other planets.
11. What do you feel most passionate about?
Writing a good story. And I don’t care if no one likes it. I have to like it.